Vegetarian Stuffed Peppers

I have certain meals that I'd refer to as "fallbacks".

Let me explain. 

We all know those days where we get home from work/school/maybe-both and we just want to collapse on our bed and have someone spoon-feed us chocolate cake. Maybe with caramel and whipped cream on top, because let's be honest here. But then, as we walk through the door, we realize that we still need to do x number of chores and clean the bathroom floor and make a meal that provides something besides pure sugar for us (and probably our family).

Hence where fallbacks come in. These are dishes that are easy and no-fuss, that I have made so many times that I know I can count on them to come out perfectly. Plus, they're delicious, not to mention healthy. A lot of healthy cooking can require a bit of thinking-- my fallback meals don't. It's just saute a bit here, boil a little there, shove in the oven and then eat. After a long day, not much is better.  

Stuffed peppers are my number one fallback meal (besides hummus and steamed vegetables, which doesn't really count as a recipe so). These are bright bell peppers packed to the brim with a fragrant saute of onions, tomato, spinach, and plenty of spices. Add in some cheese for some salty, gooey goodness and BAM! you have a meal. Bonus: these are packed with tons of protein and are under 150 calories per pepper. Low fat, low sodium, yadayada you get the point. They're awesome. Without the cheese they have the potential to be vegan, too, so yay!

P.S.
Did I mention that they're pretty?

Vegetarian Stuffed Peppers
Serves 4        Serving Size: 1 bell pepper

Ingredients:

• 4 bell peppers, any color
• 1 medium yellow onion, diced
• 2tsp olive oil
• 1 large tomato, cored and chopped
• 1/4c. sliced green onions
• 1 (9oz) package frozen spinach, thawed according to package directions and squeezed of all liquid
• 1/4tsp salt
• 1/2tsp pepper
• 1/4tsp garlic powder
• 1/4tsp paprika
• 1/3c. reduced fat feta cheese
• 1/4c. shredded skim mozzarella cheese

Instructions:

1. Bring a large pot of water to a boil.
2. Take peppers and cut off just the very top (see photo). Take out any membranes or seeds. Place peppers in the water (fully submerged) and boil for five minutes [this ensures they are soft enough to cut through]. Remove from water and let cool.
   
3. Preheat oven to 375F.
4. While peppers cool, saute onion in olive oil over medium heat for five minutes. Add tomato, green onion, spinach, and all the spices. Remove from heat and transfer to a large bowl. Let cool. Add in feta cheese and mix to evenly distribute.
5. Place peppers in a medium baking dish coated with cooking spray. They should be standing up (open side facing the ceiling) and cozy with each other (sides touching). Divide filling evenly among the peppers. You will have to pack it in, and that's ok. 
6. Top each pepper with 1 tablespoon mozzarella. Bake for 20-30 minutes, or until heated through with bubbling cheese on top.

Nutrition Facts
Sodium: 393 mg
Total Fat: 5g
         Saturated: 2g
         Mono: 2g
         Trans:0g
Sugar: 11g
Protein: 9g
Calories: 147

Spinach-Ricotta Stuffed Pasta Shells

There's this silly trend that sometimes rears its ugly head of "Oh my god, carbs are bad, carbs make you fat!!" Um, no. This myth drives dieticians crazy. In every single nutrition class ever (or, at least, the accurate and well-taught ones), my professors have stressed, over and over again: carbohydrates are essential for life. We need carbohydrates like whole wheats, rices, and fruits to keep us moving and to provide us with the energy we need to live. And it's not carbs that make us fat-- it's calories. If you eat more calories than you burn off (whether that be in daily activities, workouts, or body functions), then you will most likely gain weight. Simple as that. If you eat 2000 calories of just protein and you only use up 1400 calories that day, you will have an excess of 600 calories. It's the exact same as eating 2000 calories of just carbohydrates when you only need 1400 calories. So why not eat a balanced diet of carbohydrates, protein, and fat?

Here's a hint: if you ever discover any type of elimination diet (ex: NO sugar EVER, NO carbs EVER, ONLY juices), then it's often not healthy and you shouldn't do it. There is a ton of nutrition information out there that is misleading and is only spread around to make people who aren't certified dieticians money. Don't fall for it. Repeat: everything in moderation. You can have sugar, you can have carbs, hell if you like juice then drink your juice-- but do it in moderation, and keep your diet varied.

I am a carb lover, so I can't go long without having some type of pasta. When I am craving something that is rich and warm with creamy cheesy-goodness, I gravitate towards stuffed pasta. It's pretty simple: blend savory tomato sauce with just the right amount of rich, creamy ricotta and delicate spinach. Baking pasta is a fantastic way to get a bubbly, creamy, warm dish.

Spinach-Ricotta Stuffed Pasta Shells

Servings: 6           Serving Size: 3 shells (with the sauce)

Ingredients:

• Cooking spray
• 2c. of your favorite low-sodium marinara, divided (my recipe:here)
• 3/4c. yellow onion, diced
• 10 ounces of frozen spinach 
• 2c. low fat ricotta
• 1/2c. skim Mozzarella cheese
• 1/2c grated fresh Parmesan cheese
• 1/2tsp dried oregano
• 1/4tsp salt
• 1/2tsp freshly ground black pepper
• 1 large egg yolk
• 1/2c. fresh basil, cut into very thin strips. divided 
•  2 garlic cloves, minced
• 24 cooked jumbo pasta shells

Instructions:

1. Coat a large baking dish with cooking spray and evenly spread 3/4c. of the marinara on the bottom. Set aside.
2. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
3. In a small skillet, saute the onion in cooking spray for 3 minutes (until slightly cooked). Place in a large bowl and allow to cool slightly. 
4. Thaw spinach according to package directions, and then squeeze out the moisture. Place in the same bowl as the onion.
5. In the same bowl and the onion and spinach, combine the ricotta, mozzarella, Parmesan,  oregano, salt, pepper, egg, 1/4c. basil, and garlic. Make sure to thoroughly combine.
6. Stuff about 2 tablespoons of filling into each shell, and place them open-side down in the baking dish from step one. Pour the remaining marinara evenly over the shells, and place in the oven for 30 minutes.
7. Remove and garnish with the remaining 1/4c. basil. Devour!

Nutrition Information:
Sodium: 498 mg
Total Fat: 10g
         Saturated: 5g
         Trans: 0g
Sugar: 5g
Protein: 18g
Calories: 319